The Saiyan Chronicles
by Saberian Dream
Summary: One day, Gohan wakes up and finds himself in a strange universe with a group of parasitic slugs waging war against the Earth. How will he handle this new situation, and can Gohan ever make it home, or will he want to? Borrows elements and ideas from "Children of Destruction" and "Rise of a Legend." NOTE: On indefinite hiatus.
1. Awakening and Confrontations

The Saiyan Chronicles

DISCLAIMER: I don't own _Dragon Ball Z_ or _Animorphs_.

CHAPTER 1: Awakening and Confrontations

 **(Gohan)**

Pain. That's the first thing I became aware of. My entire body seemed to be saturated with it.

I groaned, putting a hand to my forehead.

"W-Where am I?" I said out loud.

I opened my eyes, and even that small action took a lot out of me.

As far as I could see, I was in some sort of infirmary. There were medical instruments in the corner of the room displaying vital statistics in some kind of weird alien language. As I willed effort into my weary body to move, I noticed that I was sitting on a hospital bed. How had I gotten here?

 _Okay, this is getting a little_ too _weird,_ I thought. _What am I doing here? What was the last thing that happened to me?_

And then, in a flash, it all came rushing back...

My name was Gohan. I was a Saiyan. And ever since the Cell Games over two years ago, I haven't been training at all. I never wanted to be a warrior like my father is. Others beyond my control had decided that long before I was born. All I ever wanted was to have a normal life. But it just never happened. And ever since _they_ were born, it seemed as if I was destined to suffer. But I had messed up. How could I have been so _stupid_? It was my fault my father had died, and by refusing to train and keep up with the others, I couldn't help them when another new threat presented itself, and because of that...

"No," I whispered as hot tears welled in my eyes. "It's my fault. It's all my fault..."

I couldn't help it. This had been happening for too long. And now, because of me, my world had been destroyed by Majin Buu. Millions of innocent people. My friends, and my mother. I had let them all down. Damn it! Why did this have to happen?

"It's my fault! Damn it!" I cried, tears falling down my cheeks. "Oh God, Mommy! No! God, no! No! Please, no..."

I covered my face with my hands. The hot, burning guilt was too much. I was ashamed to even show my face. I had promised after my daddy died to never let it happen again. A promise that I had broken today.

"No..." I whispered. It was too much. I couldn't take it. "No... I wish it would have been me. It _should_ have been me..."

" **Get a grip, wimp!** " a gruff voice demanded inside my head.

I froze. I knew that voice well. It was a voice that had haunted me ever since Cell.

"O-Oniari?" I asked, cursing the quiver in my voice.

" **Damn straight, wimp,** " Oniari replied. " **So you lost. Big deal. Guilt tripping yourself won't change that.** "

"I didn't just lose!" I said hotly. "I failed! Millions of innocent people died because of me!"

" **And?** " Oniari demanded. " **Those weaklings are inconsequential to us.** "

"How can you be so cruel?" I asked, blinking away my tears. "They didn't have to die! And I'm responsible!"

" **That is how nature works, wimp,** " Oniari said, unfazed. " **The weak perish at the hands of the strong. If you're really upset about all those insects, you should become stronger and get back at that wad of chewed-up bubblegum for tarnishing our reputation as Saiyans.** "

I sighed. Oniari was right, though for all the wrong reasons. I had failed to protect my world, but maybe if I could find a way to defeat Majin Buu, their losses could be avenged. And there were still the Dragon Balls on New Namek. If I could somehow get to them, I still might have a chance to wish them all back, but not as long as Buu lived.

"I guess you're right," I said. "But there's no way I can..."

The next words I was going to say died in my throat as I remembered something important. My heart jumped in terror.

"OH MY GOD!" I yelled. "Goten!"

As Majin Buu was charging up his blast to blow up the Earth, I had grabbed Goten and held him close to me. I expected to die in seconds, but clearly that was not what had happened. So where was my baby brother, the boy I had worked so hard to protect...?

I got off the bed and looked around the small room, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Goten!" I cried desperately. "Goten, where are you? Goten, speak to me!"

There was no answer, but apparently my shouts had attracted some kind of attention. A second later, two big, muscular creatures stomped into the room. They seemed very reptilian, with long, snakelike necks and so many blades they looked like walking razors. Their power levels weren't all that high, but they were impressive nonetheless. However, that wasn't what caught my attention when I first saw them.

"You have two ki signatures!" I gasped.

The creature on the right turned to his friend.

" _Ghafrash fit_ human _jalesh kra?_ " he said.

" _Goresh haffnad flagrach,_ " the other one said. " _Norda_ know _._ "

I stared at them. With the language they were speaking, they had to be aliens.

 _Who are they?_ I wondered, my brain going into overdrive. _For that matter, what planet am I on? Is this still Earth?_

All my questions were put on hold, however, as a human stepped into the room.

"Ah, good, he's awake," she said. "Now we can get some answers."

I blinked in confusion. Like the aliens, this woman had two ki signatures. That suggested that she had something in common with them. But what? And then, a thought occurred to me, something I hadn't realized yet.

 _Did they take Goten?_

If so, what did they do with him? If they had hurt him in any way, I don't think I'd be able to control myself...

"What do you want?" I asked the woman, frowning.

She smiled. It was not a nice smile. I could detect a faint malice emanating from her second ki. And now I was convinced that whoever these people were, they were not friendly. I tensed up my muscles in case a fight broke out, ready to take them all down, but not giving any outward indication that I was doing so. I wanted to keep the element of surprise on my side.

"I could ask the same of you," she said. "But don't worry. We'll find out soon enough."

She glanced at the two aliens and nodded.

"Take him," she ordered.

They moved for me. I hunched down, holding my arms out in a defensive posture. When they reached me, they each took hold of one of my arms. This was it. I didn't want to fight them, but they left me no choice.

"HIYAH!" I cried, spinning around as they maintained a tight grip on my arms. I went with the motion and threw them effortlessly off of my arms, sending them slamming into the opposite walls. One went right _through_ the wall and the other smashed hard into his wall, leaving tiny little cracks indented all around the point of impact. He slid down the stone surface and sank to the floor, unconscious.

I settled back down on my feet, turned sideways to the woman. I suppressed a wince with difficulty; I was dismayed to learn that even with the apparent healing I had undergone, there was still lingering aftereffects from the fight against Majin Buu. But beside some residual soreness, it wasn't anything serious, and I didn't want the woman to know how deeply it had affected me.

I shot her a warning glare. She stepped back in surprise.

"You're stronger than you look," she admitted. "You'll make a good host."

"Just try it," I told her. "You saw what I did to your two friends."

She reached to her belt and pulled off a small black object. It looked suspiciously like a gun. She smirked.

"Oh, you may be tough, but you're only human," she said, twisting a small dial on the side of the weapon. "I'll put you to sleep, then we can make a Controller out of you. Visser Three will be reward me greatly!"

And she pulled the trigger.

TSEEEEEWWW!

A red beam lanced out of the weapon and smacked into my chest. I didn't even feel it.

The woman's eyes widened.

"What? No way," she said, the disbelief all over her voice. "That's impossible!"

"Maybe for you, but not for me," I said simply.

I turned back and started walking towards her. Looking a little panicked, the woman turned the dial on the weapon and shot again. This time, the beam felt like a soft caress, barely brushing my skin. Steam rose from the place that it had struck me, but other than that, nothing. She wasn't very strong. Aside from the extra ki, there was nothing really significant about this woman.

I sighed. I didn't really want to hurt her, but I wanted some answers.

" _ **So what are we going to do now?**_ " another voice in my head asked me.

I jerked. I also knew that voice, but I hadn't heard it in over a year...

 _Makai?!_ I demanded, dreading what would happen.

The demon side of me who had been born through my parents' connection to Sun Wukong and Gyuumaoh had been reborn as Makai, and from the moment he was born inside me, I was doomed. When Bojack and his crew came to Earth, Makai had done horrible things to them. I was horrified by what he'd done. Yet despite my disgust, he was a part of me. I couldn't really be mad at him. I was the one who had let him take control. It was my punishment for all my failures. Having him be stuck in my head was what I deserved. Yet there was always the risk he could snap and hurt someone else... again. If he ever did, I knew that I would _never_ forgive myself...

 _What do you want?_ I asked him.

" _ **Are we gonna have some fun with her or what?**_ " he asked, his voice dripping with malicious glee.

 _W-What?_ I asked. _No! No, I NEVER want to hurt anyone like that again!_

" **The freak has a point,** " Oniari said. " **That little twat deserves a lesson in respecting us, preferably by breaking a few bones.** "

I groaned. _No, please, just go away!_

Oniari scoffed. " **Wimp.** "

" ** _Oh come on,_** " Makai insisted. " ** _I haven't eaten anything in a year! And she looks tasty... in more ways than one._** "

I clutched my head, trying to clear it of the madness.

"STOP IT!" I screamed. "SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"

When would they ever go away? When would they stop tormenting me and just leave me alone?

" _ **Party pooper,**_ " Makai whined.

" **Hey, are you gonna keep bitching, or are you going to do something?** " Oniari said.

 _What?_ I said, not really getting it. _What do you mean?_

" **Weren't you going to find out what happened to your brother?** " Oniari asked.

He was right. I couldn't focus on Oniari and Makai now. My brother had to be my top priority. With enormous effort, I turned my attention back to the woman. She was looking pretty scared, not sure what to make of me.

"Where's Goten?" I asked her.

"What are you talking about?" she wondered. "Who's Goten?"

"My brother!" I said furiously. "What did you do with him?"

I took a step forward. My foot made contact with the ground and shook it slightly. The woman cringed.

"If you mean the other human who was with you, he's being treated for his wounds right now," she said quickly.

I closed my eyes and sighed in relief. So Goten was okay, for now.

"Go, now," I said quietly. "Before I lose control completely."

There was a sound of running footsteps and I sensed her ki moving away. She had left. Once she was gone, I started breathing in and out, focusing on that. After a few seconds, I had calmed down enough to concentrate again.

I looked up.

"No, can't stop now," I told myself. "I've got to find Goten."

I reached out with my senses and found there were a lot of ki signatures being emitted nearby, thousands of them. While most of them were relatively tiny, a few seemed to be joined power levels, exactly like the woman and those creatures. This confused me to no end. Why did they have merged power levels? What did it mean?

Then something the woman said came to mind...

 _"You'll make a good host,"_ she had said.

 _Host?_ Two _power levels?_ I repeated.

"Oh my God," I said as it dawned on me. "Those people are being possessed!"

" **Bah, who cares,** " Oniari muttered.

I ignored him. This made a lot of sense. And they could be doing the same thing to Goten right now!

Hoping I wasn't too late, I rushed to the door and looked out. And once I did, I gasped.

I was standing in a gigantic open cave. There was a large, gray colored lake in the middle of this open cavern. The lake teemed with thousands of weak ki signals. Hundreds of small buildings stretched out along the edges of the cave.

As I watched, I noticed that there were two piers leading over the lake. On one, those strange reptilian beings stood guard over humans and other aliens who docilely walked forward, stuck their head in the water, and then a second later, the creatures hauled them up, kicking and struggling. On the other side of the lake, they marched resistant humans and aliens across the second pier and stuck their heads in the lake. A second later, they stopped fighting and calmly got up, walking away.

The sheer horror of it hit me in an instant.

 _That lake is filled with the beings that possess them!_ I realized. _The bladed aliens lead them over the lake, where they deposit their other ki. They probably need something from the lake. Then they lead the people back out there, where they're forced to take them back! That's why they get so quiet afterwards! They've lost control of their bodies again!_ I gasped. _They're being infested by parasites!_

"Oh God..." I whispered, sick to my stomach.

And as I stood there, listening to the screams of thousands of innocent people, I felt my anger beginning to grow...

* * *

Special thanks are in order to the always wonderful LSSJ2 Gohan for giving me permission to use both his composite characters, Oniari and Makai, as well as the storyline they fit in and for helping me get their characters down correctly. You rock, man!


	2. Oniari vs Visser Three

The Saiyan Chronicles

DISCLAIMER: I don't own _Dragon Ball Z_ or _Animorphs_.

CHAPTER 2: Oniari vs. Visser Three

 **(Oniari)**

The wimp had finally figured out what the parasitic aliens could do.

 _As if they're any threat to us..._ I thought. _I could defeat them all with both hands tied behind my back, even without transforming._

Pathetic, that's what these aliens were. They had to rely on others for strength. A true warrior does not use another creature as his crutch.

And look, the wimp was _finally_ starting to get his act together. We began walking out into the center of the cave. But even as we did so, I felt his rage. He was getting angry, and quick. _Incredible,_ I marveled. He actually _cared_ for these disgusting weaklings that these aliens were controlling. If they couldn't prevent them from stealing their bodies, then they _deserved_ everything they got.

Still, the wimp's rage was good to feel. It was hot and intense, like it was a living thing. It felt _very_ comforting. If this kept up he would lose control and I would be ready to show these lower lifeforms what true power _really_ was.

The thought excited me.

" _Maybe he'll let me have a little fun too,_ " Makai said, so only I could hear it.

"Oh, please." I snorted. "Back off, you freak. He'll give me control before he ever gives it to you."

I could sense the wimp's desire to return to his brother. He was worried about him. I snorted. While I found his naked sentimentality to be rather disgusting, I couldn't deny that the boy had flowing through his veins the blood of a warrior race, and he'd be desperately needed if the Saiyan race was to survive. If something was to happen to him, it would mean one less Saiyan, and I didn't want to take that risk.

Suddenly, the wimp stopped, glancing to the side. I knew what had caused him to do this: As he reached out with his senses, I could feel a dozen ki signatures approaching us from all sides. It appeared that the bladed freaks and the bitch who led them had informed the rest of their kind. Not that they were a match for the power of a _true_ Saiyan, of course, but they might make the wimp angrier, and help me to take control. And then, all would know that I was the most powerful being in the universe.

Fourteen bladed freaks came to a halt all around us. We were surrounded. The bitch stepped forward, cautious but confident. While she was wary, she still smelled of absolute certainty. She obviously believed in the old saying that there's strength in numbers, and that with more bladed freaks on her side, we were actually going to lose this fight.

 _She's never seen what a Saiyan can do,_ I thought with a grin.

"I advise you to surrender," she said. "There's thousands of us here. You can't possibly defeat us all."

"Try me," the wimp growled.

Ah, he was definitely drawing influence indirectly from me. How perfect. At this rate, I'd be in control in no time.

" _Mmm, I can smell this tasty bitch's fear,_ " Makai told me.

I ignored him, focusing on the wimp's confrontation.

"Why do you enslave these people?" the wimp demanded. "You have no right to do this!"

"We have every right," the bitch sneered. "We're Yeerks. We can do whatever we please."

 _Yeerks_? _That's_ what their species was called?

I laughed my ass off. What a _stupid_ name! The _perfect_ name for a race as weak as they were.

"Give up now," she said. "Don't worry, we won't hurt you. We just want to... _use_ you. You would make the perfect host body. Resistant to high-powered Dracon beams and able to take down two Hork-Bajir at once. We could use that kind of power."

 _Ah, they haven't even begun to see our power..._

"I'll never join you!" the wimp spat angrily.

"I thought you might say that," she replied gravely.

She nodded at the aliens — Hork-Bajir, apparently. That was also a stupid name. Sounded a lot like pork. Actually, now that I think about it, it was quite a fitting name. They were as insignificant to us as the pigs their name sounded like.

 _I think I'll call them Pork-Bajir,_ I thought with a mental grin.

"Attack," the Yeerk bitch commanded.

At once, the aliens lunged at us. Our muscles coiled, and I felt my Saiyan genes sing in anticipation of a good fight. Pity it was the wimp who got to be the one to battle them. He'd most likely spare them.

It was a fucking travesty.

As the first Pork-Bajir got closer, the wimp ducked under a swipe from its wrist blade and kicked it. Another Pork-Bajir kicked at us, but the wimp spun around and slammed the back of his hand into its stomach, then swiped its leg out. As the Pork-Bajir tumbled, the wimp grabbed hold of its leg and tossed it into two of its friends, sending them flying.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

Two Pork-Bajir brought their arm blades down in a diagonally aimed slash, but the wimp held out both his hands and caught the blades.

"HAAAAAAAAH!" the wimp cried, flaring our body's power level, and with a burst of ki, we blew them away.

The next three Pork-Bajir rushed at us from left, right, and back. I could read the wimp's thoughts and knew what he was going to do. He wanted to show off a little, to intimidate them. I approved, though he only wanted to end the fight sooner so no one got hurt.

 _Amateur,_ I thought. _A_ true _Saiyan revels in the fear of his opponents._

As the Pork-Bajir began attacking us with their arm, knee, and head blades, the wimp began ducking, swerving, dodging, and plain evading all the blades at lightning speed. We could hear the whooshing in our ears from all the near misses, but not one was in danger of hitting. He had this under control, and there was nothing they could do about it.

"Get him, you fools!" the Yeerk bitch screamed angrily. "He can't dodge you forever!"

By this time, the rest of the Pork-Bajir had entered the fray, aiming dozens of blades at us, but with effortless precision and perfect timing, not a single blade made contact. The wimp had decided enough was enough and kicked at a Pork-Bajir behind us, then elbowed one on the side. He held up our hand and caught a Pork-Bajir's wrist blade, then punched him. He sent a flying kick at another Pork-Bajir, and as three rushed at us, I felt our body flash speed to the side, seven feet from the Pork-Bajir. I watched in mild amusement as the Pork-Bajir crashed into each other, creating a nice comical effect as they fell on their ass.

In less than two minutes, we had defeated fourteen Pork-Bajir.

"Bravo, bravo," I told him sarcastically. "I'm so impressed. My hero."

" _You could still let me eat them,_ " Makai said. " _I'm sooooo hungry right now._ "

"This fight is pointless," the wimp said, ignoring both of us. "Just give up now and tell me where my brother is."

The Yeerk bitch was gaping at us with pure, unadulterated fear.

 _Serves her right,_ I thought happily. _She should learn to show proper respect for a Saiyan. If only the wimp wasn't so soft..._

Just then, there came a laugh. The wimp's head jerked around, searching for the source. It had been the sound of laughter, there was no doubt about that, but there hadn't been any sort of physical noise attached to it. The wimp turned our head around in confusion. He was obviously not getting it. If I could've, I would've whacked him across the head, hard.

"What the..." the wimp said. "What was that? Where did that come from?"

"It's telepathy, you moron!" I berated him.

We could sense a dark ki behind us, and instantly, the wimp turned to face it.

I laughed. "Oh God." I laughed some more. "What the hell IS that thing?"

It was a freak! A blue centaur stood before us. He possessed a scorpion tail, but other than that, there was nothing remarkable about him. Oh, his aura was definitely dark, but his ki was only a bit bigger than the Pork-Bajir that we had so easily defeated. This blue freak was not a worthwhile challenge to our powers at _all_. I sighed, feeling _very_ disappointed.

"Visser!" the Yeerk bitch said in surprise. "F-Forgive me, Visser! I tried to stop him! But he was just too power —"

The freak — apparently the Visser Three she had told us about — whipped his tail forward in the blink of an eye and placed the bladed end at her throat. His eyes narrowed and he spoke in a silky voice.

(I will deal with you soon, Sub-Visser Nineteen,) he said dangerously. (Did you really think that I came here to listen to your failures?)

"But, but... but, Visser Three..." she moaned pathetically.

(Not one more word, do you hear me?) he said, pressing the blade tighter against her neck. He pierced the flesh and a small trickle of red blood ran down her throat. Gulping fearfully, she nodded, and Visser Three withdrew his tail blade.

His eyes crinkled in amusement and he turned to face us.

(I commend you,) Visser Three told us, still speaking in our head. (To take down sixteen Hork-Bajir on your own is quite an impressive accomplishment. I suspect you are not truly human. Am I correct?)

The wimp smirked, and I could feel that once again, he was drawing influence from me.

 _Only a little while now..._ I reminded myself.

"Correct," he said, swishing our tail behind us. "I'm a Saiyan."

Our tail. I was quite pleased I had talked the wimp into keeping it. When it had first grown back not too long ago, he had seriously given thought to removing it again! This wimp just did _not_ understand the concept of a Saiyan's tail. It was crucial to unlocking the Oozaru form and our source of strength! It is a mark of pride, and to lose our tail is to suffer a fate worse than death. No Saiyan who'd lost his tail before had ever fit back into society again. Fortunately, that human girl Lime made a more convincing argument by telling him that she thought it was _adorable_ , which I frankly found disgusting, but since that seemed to do the trick, I held my tongue in check and just went along with it.

(Ah yes, the tail,) the Visser told us now. (Though you must be partly human. But enough of that.)

Visser Three arched his tail, his eyes boring into us with cruel enjoyment, and we could feel his ki spike menacingly. But the wimp wasn't afraid. I could feel it. He wasn't scared at all, and with good reason. Although it might terrify lesser beings, we were Saiyans, and Visser Three, however strong he might be to them, was still nothing compared to us.

 _What kind of name is Visser Three, anyway?_ I mused. I grinned mentally. _Oh, I know! I'll call him Visser Freak!_

(Sub-Visser Nineteen is quite right, you know,) Visser Freak said. (You would do well to join us. It is not just for our benefit, but yours as well. Even though you can take down a platoon of Hork-Bajir and withstand a full-powered Dracon beam, you have never encountered a creature such as I before, and if you don't join us, you will die. It's as simple as that.)

I laughed. Visser Freak said the silliest things. Really, he should be a comedian.

"This _freak_ thinks he can take on US?" I told the wimp privately.

Again, he ignored me. I pouted. He was spoiling my fun.

"I don't know who you are," he told the Visser, "but you're making a mistake if you think you can defeat me. Please, just tell me where my brother is and let all these innocent people go and you can leave this place unharmed. Please. Don't make me angry. You won't like it if you push me too far. Others have done that before and paid the price for it..."

Visser Freak laughed.

(Well, I _did_ warn you,) Visser Freak said.

And suddenly, his ki began changing, taking on new shapes and dimensions.

The wimp frowned. He could sense it just like I did.

(It would have been better if you had joined us,) Visser Freak said conversationally. (You could have had everything. All the power of the universe would have been at your disposal. But no matter. You are an enemy of the Yeerk Empire, and I can't let you live.)

The Visser's body began twisting and distorting in tune with the changes taking place in his ki. He was growing bigger and bigger. His skin turned black and gooey. His four legs slurped into his body like spaghetti noodles. And all the while, his ki kept growing and growing.

"You're transforming!" the wimp said stupidly.

"Well done, Sherlock," I mocked him. "Brilliant. How long did it _ever_ take you to reach THAT conclusion?"

Visser Freak laughed.

(Yes, I am,) he said mockingly. (And it is time for you to learn what we do with our enemies.)

As we watched, Visser Freak finished his transformation. And he'd turned into...

"Oh my God!" I said. "He's a giant blob of goo!"

I laughed. And here I was thinking he might have turned into a creature worthy of our power, something that could have given us a decent challenge. Instead, his power level had only risen by a few dozen. Oh, I had no doubt that he could have destroyed all of the lifeforms in this room. But he was still no match for the both of us, even with his strange transformation.

(Do you like this morph?) Visser Freak said. (I just acquired it, and I'm quite eager to test its capabilities.)

I could sense the wimp coming to a similar conclusion I had: Visser Freak wasn't anywhere near as strong as us.

But something the Visser had said stuck in my head. _He said he_ acquired _it..._ I pondered. _That makes it sounds like it's not a natural transformation._ I came to a conclusion. _Does this mean he has the power to absorb other lifeforms and use their powers as his own?_ It was the only thing that made sense. _Maybe the freak can give us a decent challenge after all._

"It's impressive, I'll give you that," the wimp said. "But you're still not as strong as I am."

Visser Freak laughed.

 _Oh, he doesn't believe us, does he?_ I thought with a mental smirk. _Well, we'll show him soon enough..._

(Poor, pathetic Saiyan,) Visser Freak taunted. (Did you _really_ think I'd fall for such an obvious lie?)

With that, he reached out with one of his black, gooey hands and grabbed hold of our body. He lifted us in the air and began squeezing very tightly. His grip was probably strong enough to crush boulders, but it did nothing against us.

(Now I've got you where I want you,) he sneered.

The hand was hot around our body. As he continued squeezing us, that heat seeped into our body, growing hotter every minute. Though it was pleasant, the freak's grip did nothing more than warm us up a little.

The wimp was having similar thoughts.

 _This is it?_ he thought. This _is how strong he is? I can't even feel it..._

(A pity you wouldn't join us,) Visser Freak said. (But you will make a tasty meal. And then we can decide the fate of your brother.)

The wimp's head snapped up at his words. Visser Freak noticed it and laughed.

(We can infest him with one of our brothers or I can have _two_ delicious meals today,) he said mockingly.

The wimp's teeth ground together furiously and he began quivering angrily. I could sense his rage growing, getting hotter all the time, threatening to burst and consume every fiber of his being, and as it intensified to near hurricane levels, I could feel him drawing more influence from me. It was fiery and intense. And it felt _wonderful_! I loved it!

"You're NOT eating my brother, you freak!" he roared.

And with his anger spiking, we pushed out our arms and flared our aura. The immense ki blowing off of our body pushed off Visser Freak's hands. He drew back, looking shocked. What, did he really think we'd just give up and die so easily?

(You're stronger than I thought,) he admitted. (But I'll get you, I promise.)

And with that, he reached for us with his other hand. It was fairly quick, but the wimp ducked our body under it. The Visser reached for us with his other hand, but again, the wimp dodged it with minimal effort. He flared our aura and brought our clenched fist slamming into Visser Freak's cheek. The Visser went skidding along the ground, our body racing after him in hot pursuit.

And all the while, I could feel the wimp slowly losing control. His arms were becoming my arms, his legs my legs...

We brought our fists into his stomach and began pounding it repeatedly, each punch eliciting a telepathic grunt of pain from Visser Freak. When that was done, we lashed out with a flying kick, which sent the Visser tumbling to the ground. We flew up high and dropped straight down, bringing out knee directly into the Visser's stomach.

(AGGGHHHH!) Visser Freak cried.

We spun into the air and rolled back, landing on the ground with a thud. When we were on the ground, we put all our power into our right leg and kicked the Visser again. His body was sent shooting away like a blast from a cannon. He skipped across the lake's surface and hit the ground, carving a path through the rock with his body. He continued flying farther back and slammed into a rock wall with a loud crash. The rock immediately crumpled, and a cloud of dust rose up around Visser Freak, blocking him from view.

But we didn't need our eyes to know where he was.

We jumped off the ground and flew high above the lake, gathering ki into our body. We held up our arms up together in an X pattern.

"MASENKO-HAAAAAAAAA!" we cried.

A white-yellow beam erupted from our palms and shot through the open cave on a collision course with Visser Freak. The Masenko made contact with the cavern wall, still surrounded by dust, and detonated in a colossal explosion. A blinding light enveloped the entire cave, and we could hear gasps and shouts from below, no doubt uttered by the Yeerks impressed with our skill.

Or just plain afraid.

Either worked with me.

The light eventually dissipated, revealing still more dust around the point of impact as well as fallen rocks from the cavern ceiling. But we could feel it with our senses: Visser Freak's ki had taken a nosedive. We assumed he was dying.

We held back our head and roared with laughter.

"Take a look at that!" we shouted for everyone to hear. "No one challenges a Saiyan and lives to get away with it!"

The bugs below began trembling. We could see the fear in their eyes and sense it in their life forces. Obviously, this Visser Freak was feared by many of them. To be able to take him down was a great thing. No one had ever done it before.

 _Before us,_ I mused. _Never let a bug do a Saiyan's job._

But before we could properly revel in the enjoyment of taking down a much feared opponent, the dust had cleared, but Visser Freak's ki level hadn't gone down — instead, it was starting to build back up, growing higher and higher, skyrocketing to new heights!

We turned our head around to see what was happening.

The freak had apparently returned to his original form, and now he was changing again. He was turning red with scales. Eight heads were beginning to sprout from his neck. Eight legs popped out of his legs and eight clawed hands grew from his torso. And he grew bigger and bigger, even bigger than the blob monster. He was now as tall as a ten-story building.

(A valiant attempt, but you will have to do better than that!) he growled. (Your brother will pay the price for your defiance!)

Then I _felt_ it. The wimp surrendered completely. His rage had become _my_ rage. _I_ now controlled my body. The pretender was gone.

 _Yes! Yes!_ I thought happily. _Now I can show these miserable insects what a true Saiyan can really do!_

(I'll make both of you suffer for what you've done to me!) Visser Freak shouted.

"Oh?" I shot back with a smirk, crossing my arms over my chest. "Go ahead and try it, _Visser Freak_."

The Visser shook with rising fury, and his ki spiked darkly.

It was good to see.

He picked up one enormous foot and slammed it into the ground in front of him with a thunderous boom. It threw those standing close to him to their knees. He lifted another foot and smashed it down, once again shaking the floor. Then he started steadily moving his other legs forward in slow succession, humans and Pork-Bajir scrambling to get out of his way, each leg, as thick around as tree trunks, pounding into the ground, producing miniature earthquakes as Visser Freak slowly, _slowly_ approached, obviously trying to scare me.

I yawned for good measure, showing him that it wouldn't work on me.

(You disrespectful creature!) Visser Freak yelled, stopping near the lake's edge. (How dare you! You won't be laughing soon!)

I smirked.

"Oh, I highly doubt that, my _friend_ ," I said mockingly. "You see, you're nothing compared to me."

(Let's see you take this on, you fool!) he roared.

And with that, he did something unexpected: He opened up his sixth head and shot a fireball at me.

"Oh, this looks interesting," I said.

As the fireball approached, I phased away from the blast, letting it pass harmlessly through the spot my body had occupied a few seconds before. Once it had passed through, I flash sped back to my location, making it look as if I had disappeared and reappeared.

I looked down at Visser Freak and smirked.

The freak growled and shot off another fireball. This one I moved to the side slightly to duck. The Visser shot another fireball at me with his third head, and this one I backhanded away, a slight warmth passing over me as the fireball made brief contact.

And then Visser Freak began firing a full barrage of fireballs at me. As one fireball came too close to me, I moved my back downwards, the fireball passing harmlessly over me. Another fireball came at me from the side, but I moved to the side again, effortlessly avoiding it. Even more fireballs came shooting after me, and again I kept dodging. This went on for a few minutes. I could have blasted this entire cavern to rubble in a few seconds, but I wanted Visser Freak to _fear_ me before I finished him off. He _would_ learn to show proper respect for a Saiyan.

(WILL YOU STAY STILL AND LET ME HIT YOU?!) Visser Freak roared. (STOP RUNNING AWAY, YOU COWARD!)

I growled, his words cutting deeply at my pride. I hadn't been running because his little flame tricks could actually _hurt_ me. I just wanted to _prove_ to him that _nothing_ he did could EVER hurt me, and he assumed that it was cowardice? How DARE he call me a coward! He wanted to hit me so badly?

 _Fine, I'll let him!_

"Have it your way, you freak!" I shouted.

I held my position, doing nothing. The fireballs flew at me from all sides and splashed into my body. Beside a slight toasty feeling, there was absolutely no effect. As the fireballs burned futilely against me, they expended all their energy and evaporated into smoke, throwing up a smokescreen around me, blocking my body from being seen.

Visser Freak laughed, no doubt believing he'd defeated me.

I grinned.

 _Oh, wait till he finds out,_ I thought.

(You see that?) he said, blasting his voice around for all to hear. ( _This_ is what happens to those foolish enough to challenge the Yeerk Empire! Now look what has become of this boy! Reduced to so much ashes!)

A large cheer erupted from down below.

Just then, the smoke began dissipating. It slowly faded, and as it did, I could hear reactions from down below as my body returned to view.

"Is that what I think it is?" someone asked.

"It sure as hell looks that way!" another person said.

"No way!" a third voice shouted. "It's impossible!"

(This cannot be happening!) Visser Freak said in disbelief.

A second later, the smokescreen had vanished entirely, and they all could see for themselves that Visser Freak's fireballs had, in fact, done nothing to me. Not even a scratch. I reached out with my ki senses to ascertain what everyone in the cavern was feeling. Many of them were radiating auras of pure distress. I could _feel_ it, I could literally _taste_ it in their very life force.

They were afraid of me.

So much the better.

I laughed loudly, my voice echoing to the far corners of the cavern.

"Thanks for the bath, you freak!" I said. "But unless you've got something else to show me, I'd say that just about sums it up. There's no way you could ever hope to beat me. If you give up now, I _might_ spare your life." I grinned wickedly. "But only if you _beg_ for it like the dog you are! Go on, boy, beg for your life. Go on. Beg. Aw, is it too shameful for you, boy? That's okay. New dogs just have to be broken in, after all."

(I WILL DESTROY YOU IF IT'S THE LAST THING I DO!) Visser Freak roared.

He put all eight of his heads together and shot out eight fireballs at once, each seemingly bigger than the last ones.

"Oh, how cute," I sneered. "He can enlarge his fireballs."

And so I began ducking and dodging the fireballs again. I really wanted to just grab one and hurl it back at the freak, but I could sense it in his ki; he was getting angrier the more times that he missed me, and that wounded pride hurt him much worse than any physical blow I could possibly give him. But far beneath that emotion was an another underlying sensation: Fear. I could feel it as clearly as if I myself were experiencing it.

Deep down, Visser Freak was afraid.

I had decided enough was enough.

I reappeared in front of a full barrage of fireballs. The first one I swatted away, the second I kicked, and the next two I deflected with two low-powered ki blasts. They made contact with the fireballs and both dissipated into harmless smoke.

But I had a very different idea with the fifth one.

I held out my hand, palm forward, facing the fireball. It flew closer, and when it was just close enough, I reached out with my ki and built an invisible wall of energy around my palm. The fireball hit this wall and, once it made contact with it, I sent my ki flowing into the fireball, holding it suspended in midair in front of me, rendered useless now.

There were gasps and shouts of disbelief from down below.

(How are you able to do this?) Visser Freak demanded, seemingly unaffected, but despite the bravado he emanated, I could clearly hear the fear in his voice, despite how much he was trying to cover it up. (No mortal being possesses such power. What _are_ you?)

I laughed, holding the ball of fire high above my head. I sent my ki surging into the fireball, and as I pumped it full of energy, I could hear the flames crackling louder above me as the fireball began increasing in size. Bigger, bigger, and bigger, until it was the size of a small moon in the open cavern. I was awash in my own power, and it felt good.

"Well, you're right about one thing," I said. "I'm no mere mortal. I AM A SAIYAN!"

I cocked my hand back, gathering strength for the throw. I smirked.

"HERE YOU GO!" I roared, swinging the fireball down. "A LITTLE PRESENT FOR YOU! CATCH!"

And I threw the fireball at him, watching with great satisfaction as it flew down directly at Visser Freak. The Visser turned around, obviously intending to try and run away from it, but he was too bulky. His body moved very slowly, and another second later, the big fireball splashed against him, setting him ablaze. Tongues of flames licked at his body from all sides, roasting him alive.

(ARRRRRRGGGGHHHHHH!) Visser Freak screamed in pain.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" I laughed. "WAHAHAHAHA! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

" _You know, you're stealing my act,_ " Makai pouted. "I'm _usually the one who acts so crazy._ "

 _Oh shut up, you freak,_ I sneered. _This is_ my _show._

Fire hail began raining down on the buildings around the Visser, setting them on fire too. People screamed and ran desperately to try to avoid the flaming hail. Some weren't successful, and they caught fire too. Those that did shrieked in pain and terror and started wildly running around. A few of the smarter ones instantly dropped to the ground and began feverishly rolling around on the floor in a pathetic attempt to put the flames out.

Through it all, I could sense their fear, their panic, their utter desperation. They knew that they were going to die, and I was high on their fear, their helplessness. It was the most wonderful feeling in the world. I _loved_ it. They were nothing compared to a Saiyan warrior who loved a good fight. It was refreshing to see them crumble down, their arrogance shattering to so much broken glass when confronted with an unbeatable, unstoppable adversary.

Still, though they were beaten, I wasn't ready to give them the merciful deaths they were longing for just yet. I didn't want to _defeat_ them. I wanted to _break_ them, completely and utterly, and let them know how severely outclassed they had been, right from the start, to punish them for ever _daring_ to challenge a superior being such as I.

I knew what to do next. The time had come to show them the depths of my perfect power.

"Playtime's over, runts!" I shouted down.

I reached down inside my body, searching for the power I knew existed down there. Deeper, deeper... there! There it was! Once I had found it, I pulled it to the surface. The air around me began shaking. Rocks fell from the ceiling as I called on my power. With a fierce roar, the power exploded around me. My muscles bulked up and a golden yellow aura surrounded me, glowing with the radiance of ki. And even though I could not see it, I knew my eyes had taken on a green hue.

I had transformed into a Super Saiyan, the pinnacle of the elite, the pride and joy of the Saiyan race. A power so great only the best of the best could ever hope to achieve and sustain it, beings far superior to mortal creatures, and I _was_ such a being. The wimp had been a Super Saiyan ever since the fight with Garlic Jr., but it was there that I had been born, as he transformed and ascended into the legendary status, although I did not become aware of it until much later. Still, it was a very fitting birth: Like most pure-blooded Saiyans, I was literally born in a blaze of glory, and that would trail the fire of my burning Saiyan ambition across the universe in a raging inferno of eternal destruction.

"Look, now he's got golden hair!"

"What the hell is going on? How did he do that?"

"What IS this boy? How can he do this?"

"He's a monster!"

"He'll destroy everything!"

"Run for your lives!"

Their screams of terror encouraged me, but I had more important matters on my mind.

It was time to show Visser Three who he was _really_ dealing with.

I moved with the speed of thousands of my ancestors; one second, I was in the sky, the glowing power of my aura all around me. A second later, I was behind Visser Freak, still on fire and unaware that I was behind him. Wasting no time, I drove my fist into his back, stretching the skin inwards and pushing through to the other side. I _felt_ Visser Freak's body quiver under the might of my punch.

(ARRGGGHHHHHH!) he screamed.

He staggered forward a couple of steps, obviously struggling just to maintain his composure after my punch to his back. With what seemed to be immense effort, he turned around to face me, a glare in his eyes as intense as the flames still burning across his body.

(YOU!) he howled in pure hatred.

"Never underestimate the power of a Super Saiyan," I said with a wicked grin.

I brought my leg across his fourth head in a full power kick, sending Visser Freak staggering back again. He turned to face me, his sixteen eyes blazing with anger, and I could see a red welt appearing on the spot where I had kicked him. But deep beneath his rage was fear. He knew by now that he stood absolutely no chance against me. It was wonderful to see. It was the unspoken confirmation of my superiority over him, that he was a lesser being who could never hope to reach my level of power.

But I wanted him to _admit_ it.

 _Oh, yes, I know what to do now,_ I thought slyly.

I knew the way to further break Visser Freak.

Calling on ki within, I held it up palm upward and formed the ki into my hand, directing it to take shape. Once I had done so, it formed into a disc of ki. Ah, yes, the Kienzan — the attack move that transformed raw ki into a lethal disc of energy, so infinitely sharp it cut through almost anything. Very little could be done to stop it, and if there was, certainly not from this disgusting weakling. He probably didn't even know what ki _was_.

Pathetic.

I tossed the disc at him. The Kienzan was too fast to dodge. My aim held true, and the disc soared through the air toward him, piercing his third neck immediately upon contact. It sliced clean through his third head, leaving no trace that it had severed one of his appendages from his body. The Kienzan flew through the air for another couple meters before I reached out and canceled it with my ki.

A second later, Visser Freak's third head split with his neck, separating itself with a gush of weird colored blood.

(Arrrgghhhh!) Visser Freak cried. (You monster! You've maimed me!)

"Oh, I'm just getting started," I said with a fierce grin.

I flash sped over to the falling head. Grabbing the end of it, I flared my aura, gathering strength for what I was about to do, and brought the head high above the freak. Using my ki to strengthen my grip, I swung it to the side with all the force I could muster into it — directly into Visser Freak's torso. I was rewarded for my efforts with a sharp smack as it hit him.

WHACK!

The blow was powerful enough to send him skidding for a dozen or so meters.

(You insolent pest!) Visser Freak shouted. (How dare you!)

"Oh, I'm just getting started," I said mischievously.

I flash sped in front of Visser Freak and brought the severed head up again, using my ki to swing it into his torso again.

WHACK!

(Arrgghhhh!) Visser Freak cried.

I brought back the head and swung it into his torso a third time.

WHACK!

(Arrrrgghhhh!)

A fourth time.

WHACK!

(Arrrggghhh!)

I lost track of the number of times I whacked Visser Three with his own dismembered head, but each time, I could feel his ki decreasing to lower and lower levels. He was getting weaker and weaker. I was beating the life out of him, and it felt _good_. I would tear him to pieces and force him to confess to his own inferiority before ending his life.

WHACK!

ARRRGGGGHHH!

I held the head back, smirking confidently.

"Do you admit defeat?" I asked him.

The Visser stared at him through eyes blurred by pain, and I saw in them two emotions raging very clearly inside him. One, naturally was rage. I could feel it in his ki as well as see it reflected in his eyes. He was furious, a raging tempest of anger and raw, uncontrolled, boiling hate that burned ferociously like a volcano contained inside of him.

The second, and most dominant emotion, was pure, sheer, heart-stopping, mind-numbing terror. The small worm of fear that I had felt before within Visser Freak had skyrocketed into a blinding, panicked terror that made Visser Freak quiver impotently and shake with dread. He was afraid. He was _terrified_. More than that, he _knew_ that he was going to die, and the worst of all, he knew _exactly_ how it was going to feel.

I had broken the mighty Visser Three, and all that was left was for him to admit it, and then, a quick death.

So I was shocked by what happened next.

(You may be stronger than I am,) Visser Freak moaned through the pain, (but I will NEVER surrender to you, you monster!)

"What?" I snapped, my voice quivering with the anger I felt inside. "How dare you..."

(You call yourself a superior being, yet you feel the need to lord it over others,) Visser Freak said weakly. (I say you're not as perfect as you think you are. I think deep down inside, you are just a frightened little child who knows he can never measure up to me. Your strength is greater than my own, but what I lack in power I make up for with my willpower. You lack the focus to do what must be done. In the end you are _nothing_ more than a spoiled, posturing, pathetic child!)

"YOU LITTLE WRETCH!" I roared. "You DARE talk to me that way?"

WHAM!

I had rammed my fist into Visser Freak's stomach. He spat more blood.

"If that's the way you feel," I growled, "then I'll grant you the slowest death I could possibly give you!"

Within the folds of his flesh, I opened my fist, gathering ki into my palm.

The Visser seemed to realize what I was doing.

(No, wait, you can't!) he shouted. (Don't do it! STOP!)

But it was too late for him. I blasted straight _through_ him with a concentrated burst of yellow ki. Visser Freak flew backwards from the force of the blast, falling with an earth-shaking boom just a few feet away, smoking trailing from his abdomen. After a few seconds passed, the smoke dissipated, revealing a rather large hole in the middle of Visser Freak's torso. Blood pooled around him and he moaned, barely holding on by a thread. I could sense his ki rapidly diminishing. The Visser was on death's door, and within minutes, he'd be dead.

My work was done.

I turned around and looked at the large lake in the center of the cavern.

 _Well, not yet,_ I thought, grinning again.

I flew high into the cavern until I was at the top of the ceiling, which was a dome of carved rock the size of a city. Many of the buildings still burned freely, but apparently the Yeerks had managed to put out the fires that had burned on them, and now they stood there, congregated around the gray colored lake, gawking up at me, no doubt wondering what I was going to do next.

I smirked. I would show them.

" _What are you doing?_ " a voice in my head asked me.

I ignored the voice in my head and brought my palms to the side, cupping them together. Then, I reached deep within and began pulling out large amounts of raw ki, directing it into my cupped palms. For a few moments, I just hovered there, drawing more and more ki into my palms, pumping it full of energy. Finally, until it felt I could gather no more, I spoke.

"Kaaa... meee... haaa..." I chanted.

A dazzling orb of blue-white ki formed within my palms. I pumped more and more ki into it. The orb grew in size, glowing in intensity as it continued growing stronger and stronger in my grasp. The glow of the Kamehameha spread to the farthest corners of the cavern, lighting it up and illuminating everything as clearly as if it were sunny inside.

" _No, don't do it!_ " the voice insisted. " _Please, don't do this! STOP IT!_ "

"... meee..." I said.

The orb's power intensified, humming to the tune of my own life force. It felt good to be surrounded by so much of my own ki.

" _NO!_ " the voice begged. " _Stop this! STOP THIS!_ "

I ignored him, thrusting my palms forward.

"HAAAAAAAAAA!" I cried.

A colossal beam of blue-white power erupted from my palms. The Kamehameha Wave traveled in a straight line down, heading directly for the gray lake. The second that the beam made contact with the sludgy waters of the lake, it detonated in a titanic explosion.

KA-BOOOOOOOM!

A blinding light enveloped the entire cavern. Fierce winds rolled outward from the point of impact, no doubt blowing those insignificant pests who couldn't withstand the effects of the blast off of their feet. The explosion intensified, the white light expanding to encompass the whole area. The sides of the walls crumpled inwards and giant rocks the size of houses fell from the ceiling.

Eventually, the light faded, and the winds died down. A veil of dust and debris settled over the lake. Several minutes later, the dusty cloud vanished into harmless particles, giving me a clear look at the ruins of the lake.

The lake was gone. In its place was a gigantic crater that stretched hundreds of feet down. Jagged rocks jutted up around the edges of the crater. Some of the falling rocks had crushed the buildings as well as people. Lots of them were now crying out for help.

"Hahahahahaha!" I laughed. "Look at those peons! Hahahahaha! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Then, slowly, I could feel myself losing control of my body.

"No!" I groaned, clutching my head, as if in pain. "No, not you! Not now!"

The creeping sensation passed over my legs and arms, spreading through my torso and up into my head. Despite my very best efforts, as I struggled to regain control of my weakening joints and limbs, I simply could _not_ prevent the wimp, that whiny bitch, from subverting control over my body. I could only delay him at best and even now, already, unable to do more than watch helplessly, I could _feel_ myself slowly losing the battle.

I growled in pain and rage. No, not now! I couldn't lose it now!

But it was not to be.

With an almighty jolt to my senses, the wimp resumed control of my body. I was banished to the farthest corners of his mind, nothing more than a disembodied presence in the pretender's mind, and now, as he gaped at all the damage I had done while I was in control, I could read his thoughts, as clearly as if they were my own. First there was shock, then disbelief, then finally, horror.

"No," he moaned. "No, not again... NOT AGAIN!"

And he clutched at his head, his emotions reeling wildly. He sank to the ground, whimpering pitifully.

And this boy called himself a Saiyan? It was rather pathetic.

He fell to his knees and pounded the ground with a fist.

"I can't believe it," he moaned, tears welling in his eyes. "I let it happen again... I _let_ it happen..."

Really, this self-pity party he was throwing for himself was beginning to get on my nerves.

"When will it ever end?" he moaned, and I could tell he was really close to losing it completely. "When will the nightmare stop?"

"Excuse me," I said. "I hate to interrupt this little drama you've got going on, but don't you have something else to worry about?"

"What?" the wimp said, blinking away his tears. "What... what do you mean?"

I growled in frustration.

"Your brother, you moron!" I berated him. "Aren't you supposed to be looking for your brother?"

I couldn't have him freaking out, not now. The more despair and anguish he felt, the more that _freak_ could potentially assume control of his body. I'd rather have him get angry, _very_ angry, so _I_ could spread my limbs and kick back a little and relax _my_ way, but it was still better for him to be in control than that... that _thing_. At least the wimp was somewhat malleable, and open to suggestion.

With Makai, there was no chance of that. None whatsoever.

"You're right!" the wimp gasp, all grief forgotten in his desire to locate his brother.

"Well, then, get going!" I told him. "Hurry up and find him so we can get out of this place!

The wimp nodded, wiping away the last of his tears.

"Right," he said, closing his eyes and reaching out with his senses.

We could sense the pint-sized Saiyan's ki quite clearly in one of the undamaged buildings, the ones that hadn't caught fire or been crushed under the falling rocks. I could sense the wimp's infinite relief. He had been afraid that the boy may have been hurt. And I admit that I would have felt disgusted in myself to learn that one of the few survivors of the Saiyan race had been killed by carelessness.

 _Still, that was a rare battle,_ I thought with a grin. _I'd forgotten just how much fun it could be._

I hadn't gotten to have this much excitement since the wimp had transformed into a Super Saiyan 2. And as we ran off to reunite with the wimp's brother, I wondered how long it would be until the next time I got a chance to fight.

Knowing him, probably a long time.

* * *

Power levels are as follows:

Gohan: 1,500,000  
Super Saiyan Gohan: 750,000,000

Visser Three: 18  
Visser Three (goo monster): 60  
Visser Three (fire beast): 100

Hork-Bajir-Controllers: 12 (average)

They are, of course, subject to revision depending on how LSSJ2 Gohan manages his power levels.

Now, time for the replies.

Please read and review!

KoS


	3. The Deals of Gods

The Saiyan Chronicles

DISCLAIMER: I don't own _Dragon Ball Z_ or _Animorphs_.

CHAPTER 3: The Deals of Gods

 **(Ellimist)**

I smiled. The boy had performed admirably, and the first move was already made with the destruction of the Yeerk pool. This was just the opening sequence in a long line of heavily calculated and strategically planned maneuvers, and it could only end in victory or defeat, but who would be left standing when the dust cleared — me, or my opponent?

"First contact has already been initiated," I said, looking at the only other being that occupied time and space with me.

Unlike me, my opponent sought not to learn, but to control, to dominate. He wanted nothing more than to rule the many dimensions of time and space, and then, once that was complete, to rewrite the fabric of reality as he saw fit. He was equal parts flesh and machine, a cyborg. He possessed no arms or other appendages, and he sat atop the throne that was a part of his body. Raw power flowed from him in a cyclone of dark, malicious energy, a blast furnace of blazing hatred and burning ambition that leeched life from his very environment.

Crayak.

"It will be difficult with him as a piece," Crayak admitted, turning his red eyeball toward me.

His fierce, singular glare, which could make even the most hard-willed sentient cower down in fear, did not move me in the slightest.

"Yes, but challenging," I agreed, barely suppressing a grin.

"I must admit, I rather enjoy this too, Ellimist," Crayak said with an evil smirk. "The clash of their battle could destroy the entire universe. If even a single miscalculation is made, it will mean the end of us all, and you and I along with it."

My grin disappeared.

I had never liked Crayak, not from the moment we met, all those millions of years ago, when he introduced me to a new type of game: Mass genocide. I know to him, I seemed nothing more than a weak pacifist, and he undoubtedly must believe I think of him as a sadistic monster, but I know there is more to that than Crayak. At times he displays a level of cunning and precision in moving his pieces across time and space that makes me wonder whether the brainless brute image he projects is just for show.

Oh, I know Crayak himself is evil to the core, but I had begun to wonder just what he was, over the millennia. Where had Crayak come from? I could trace his own individual timeline back over the path he had traversed, where some unseen force had exiled him from his own galaxy and set him on the journey that led, unfortunately for me and for all sentient species, to our galaxy. But that was all I knew. The rest was impossible to trace. It was as if all the "files" of the universe had been "erased" to keep me from learning more, to use a crude analogy. What hidden secrets did Crayak have in his past?

But while that was for future research, my attention right now was drawn to the callous way in which he so eagerly mocked the potential destruction of billions of galaxies filled with trillions of sentient races.

Even now, after so much time spent with him, Crayak knew exactly the right words to anger me.

"Yes, just like you, Crayak," I said distastefully. "To derive pleasure at the idea of so much death and destruction."

"Now, come, come, Ellimist," Crayak chided. "You know you love a good game as well as I do."

"A game of chance, purely for excitement, where there are no lives at stake," I retorted with some heat.

Crayak laughed his booming laugh, a cruel sound that rippled across space-time.

"Don't lie," Crayak said. "You need me as much as I need you. Our destinies are intertwined together. Without me, you are just a lonely gamer, lost in a world that doesn't care about you, without a place, without purpose, a being whose species died long ago. And, without you, as much as I hate to admit it, I wouldn't be who I am today. I don't regret crossing paths with you. You are my greatest opponent, Ellimist. And a constant source of entertainment for me."

"Whether we need each other is irrelevant," I said, trying not to let Crayak show that his words had affected me.

Was that the reason that I hadn't destroyed Crayak, all those eons ago? I had the power to simply wipe him out of existence, but instead, I let him follow me here, to this place, so our game could resume. It was a really disturbing thought, to realize that I could have forever rid the universe of a mortal threat, but instead I'd allowed it to continue to satisfy my own juvenile fantasies.

Had I really changed? Physically, I had become a god, able to warp space and time and erase entire timelines from existence, able to bend reality to my very will. But inside, was I still the same panicky Ketran youth who had made all those wrong choices?

There was no time to focus on that now. Right now, I had to ensure that the universe was to survive the coming battle.

"The game has begun, and it needs to be overseen," I told him.

"In that, you are correct," Crayak said. "This is only the first move, after all. And the other pieces are yet to arrive as well."

I nodded, though in this empty, formless void, that action was meaningless. We had no physical forms — our bodies had long since been crushed and pulverized to the merest of atoms in a black hole. Rather, I agreed with Crayak and let my astral self carry my intentions to Crayak, projecting them loud and clear like I was actually nodding.

"Yes, which is why we must set other events into motion," I said.

Crayak smiled, and I could sense dark amusement emanating from his aura.

"You know what to do," he said.

I nodded again and returned my attention to the eternity that was time and space. This was it. At last, the final game had begun between me and Crayak. A moment I'd been counting down for centuries. The coming fight would decide what the fate of the universe would be.

Winner take all.

* * *

Please tell me how you like this chapter! ^_^


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